


we will take the best parts of ourselves and make them gold

by MarsBar2019



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Cunnilingus, Dirty Talk, F/M, Feelings Realization, First Time, Houston they're in LOVE, Love Confessions, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Vaginal Fingering, Vaginal Sex, caleb's love language is lighting and stage design, explicit content, henry crabgrass says always ask for consent, i will not elaborate, lord i hate that tag, more like LOTS OF EXPLICIT CONSENT, needs to be a tag, the golden dick, we stan consent king widogast
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-30
Updated: 2020-10-30
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:00:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,821
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27273079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarsBar2019/pseuds/MarsBar2019
Summary: In which I (and Caleb) fix Jester not getting to scavenger hunt for the golden dick.This was supposed to be a one-shot gift to a friend. I blacked out and wrote this apparently. I don't know how to explain myself. This is soft, y'all. But also they *fuck*.
Relationships: Jester Lavorre/Caleb Widogast
Comments: 40
Kudos: 250





	we will take the best parts of ourselves and make them gold

**Author's Note:**

  * For [L.](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=L.).



> *Caleb voice* I'm already going to hell, so-

Home.

Jester Lavorre couldn’t describe the feeling any other way, staring up at the living mural on the ceiling of her bed, a perfect representation of the one she’d made as a young girl. Like a toothache you only notice once it’s gone, the place inside her that had been longing for _home_ was no longer bruised at the edges and she only knew it had been there now that it was soothed.

It felt silly, in a way, given that she was in this room for the first time. But last time she was back in Nicodranas, she hadn’t felt home. The Chateau, her mother, it was all familiar, it was all comforting, but it didn’t feel like home the way this magical tower did. This place felt like hers, and it felt like a place she could stop holding her breath. The shoulders that had been carrying everything, everything, relaxed. Jester hadn’t even really explored her rooms yet, let alone the rest of the tower, but she thought she could just lay here watching the undulation of this mural all night. It was perfect. Every detail was perfect. Caleb had deliberated about every last inch of it, down to the scrubs in her bathroom that smelled like cinnamon and vanilla sugar.

It was a room she would have imagined for herself, filled with all the things that brought her unabashed joy, but refined, luxurious. When Caleb had asked to see her bedroom at the Chateau, she never imagined it was for something like this. And then, when they started visiting the rooms of her friends, she thought he might have replicated her childhood room, meaning well of course, but her heart had sunk at the thought of spending her time in a room that she was just starting to admit, quietly, only to herself, was a gilded cage. Solitary confinement for the little girl, not an oasis for the grown woman with crossbow bolt scars on her belly and calluses on her fingers.

Shaking herself from her reverie, Jester hopped out of bed and started perusing around the room a little more. She hadn’t had the chance yet to really take in all of the little details, and there was a part of her that wanted to know what other surprises, like the bath scrubs, Caleb might have hidden in here. She decided not to think too hard about the part of her that warmed at that idea.

Jester scanned the room and her eyes landed on a wardrobe set into the wall that she was sure was empty, but… She skipped over and flung the doors open and heard herself gasp, pressing her hands to her mouth. The wardrobe was _filled_ with gorgeous clothes, dresses of any imaginable color, even things she wouldn’t wear in the tower, like coats and dress gowns. There was a selection of skirts and chemises that were butter soft to the touch, the kind of thing she might change into to hang out after a long day. But her eyes were immediately drawn to the luscious dyed cottons and gleaming silks, embroidered and pinned and breathtakingly beautiful. None of this could be taken out of the tower, half of it wasn’t even practical to wear just walking around or eating dinner. But Caleb knew how much she loved wearing pretty things like this and made these for her to have fun with.

As Jester pulled out a green velvet jacket and a matching velvet skirt with a beautiful pink taffeta panel in front, it occurred to her to be impressed that Caleb had enough fashion sense to craft these things. Some of them were replicas of dresses she’d worn before, or had cooed over in shops, but many she’d never seen before. She tried to push the question out of her head of whether Caleb might have been thinking of someone else he'd seen them on. Not that that should’ve bothered her.

Jester assembled several outfits from her new wardrobe and tried them on one by one, eventually settling on a royal purple dress with gold floral embroidery and flowy white sleeves. It wasn’t so fancy she’d look ridiculous at dinner - though she briefly considered wearing the very dramatic black satin gown that had a delicate white lace overlay and what appeared to be black and white pearls sewn into the sleeves - but nice enough that she knew she’d be justified in preening a little when her friends saw her. Affectionate amusement panged briefly in Jester’s chest when she realized that she wouldn’t actually be able to wear many of the fancier dresses outside her room, because Caleb was, after all, a man, and therefore seemingly unaware of the frankly absurd number of supporting garments a woman wore under such getups. Petticoats, corsets, slips, cinchers, stockings, the list went on, all absent. She supposed there was no reason for him to remember that myriad of critical items, even though he’d almost certainly seen a woman in them before. Jester wasn’t an expert, but she figured by the point in the process that you were unlacing corset stays and unhooking garters, you were probably quite distracted. She felt her cheeks grow hot and pushed _those_ thoughts out of her mind too.

With a swirl of her skirts, Jester turned around abruptly, not bothering to close the wardrobe, and walked to the sitting room to get a better look at the stained glass window above the fireplace. It was there that she noticed a small folded piece of paper on the mantle. Furrowing her brow, she picked it up and opened it.

_Miss Lavorre,_

_When we were on Rumblecusp, you seemed disappointed that you could not participate in the wonderful scavenger hunt that you arranged for Travelercon participants. You put so much work into that event, and could not even keep the golden dick as a memento. I thought you might like to have a scavenger hunt now that Travelercon is over and you can enjoy it. Simply follow the clues. Find the golden dick and there is a prize waiting for you._

_Your humble servant,_

_C.W._

_P.S. Your first clue: On the fifth floor, look in the place where a visitor might sit down to write._

An unfamiliar warmth spread through Jester’s chest as she read the note. This was unbelievably thoughtful of him. Like everything else about this place. Shoving the note in her pocket - these dresses even had _pockets?!_ \- Jester ran out to the hallway. She floated down to the fifth floor, just below the one her room was on, and looked between the three doors. A place a visitor might sit down to write…the only three rooms on this floor were Caduceus’s, Yasha’s and the guest room, so that left one obvious choice.

When she slipped into the guest room, Jester immediately went to the desk, but there was nothing there except the same five books that everyone had, a quill and a pot of ink. She opened the drawers, all empty, she knelt under the desk and squinted up to see if there was something stuck there. Standing up with a huff, she picked up the books one by one to see if there was a note hidden under there. Nothing. _You should’ve known he wouldn’t make it easy for you…_ Jester began to flip through the books, not really thinking there’d be anything and she’d have to look elsewhere - but then something caught her eye. In _Tusk Love_ , she noticed some of the words were underlined. Not whole passages, just words. Jester sat down and pulled Caleb’s note out of her pocket, dipping the quill in the ink as she flipped to the first pages. It took some time to find the first underlined word - _between._ She furrowed her brow in concentration as she searched for the next words. _The sun._ Both were underlined this time. She was sure she was on to something and started writing down the words in the order she found them.

_Between the sun and moon, with threads made of glass, find the hibiscus set in purple and blue._

“Yes!” Jester exclaimed, victoriously, to an empty room. She rushed out, turned, went back to shut the door and floated down to the salon, where the stained glass mural of Molly’s coat hung above the fireplace. Gods, she hadn’t really appreciated how large this place was the first time she came through here. The salon was three floors, filled to the brim with books. The overstuffed chairs and nooks looked so inviting…she was excited to pick out a corner and make her way through these tomes. She could even have a cat bring her cookies without having to get up out of one of these huge chairs. _This tower is the greatest._ Jester climbed up on the banister of one of the massive curling staircases and rode it all the way down, shrieking with laughter. She waved to a very surprised Veth on her way past, which only made her laugh more. She couldn’t remember laughing so freely these past few weeks. _He did all this for you to have some fun._ The thought was so disorienting she almost tumbled right off the banister at the bottom, but fortunately she managed to save her dismount.

“Nice job, sticking the landing,” Fjord’s voice called out. Jester jumped and blushed when she turned and saw Fjord and Caleb both standing over one of the tables, looking at a spread of maps. Her heart stumbled over itself a little when his blue eyes met hers and she didn’t miss the smile that he tried to bite back as he turned his eyes quickly back to the table.

“You’re just jealous,” Jester teased, sticking her tongue out at Fjord. “Because you know _you_ couldn’t ride the staircase down in a dress like this and look cute the whole time.”

“You’ve got me there,” Fjord mumbled, his attention back on the maps. Jester twisted her hands together, feeling a little awkward now about doing Caleb’s scavenger hunt where he could see her. But the two men were engrossed in whatever they were doing and Jester wandered off casually to the mural over the fireplace. It was almost too tall for her to touch, but she scanned along the lower horizon and quickly found a cluster of hibiscuses, just like Molly had on his coat, set between a sun and moon. Jester reached up to it and as soon as her fingers touched the glass, she heard Caleb’s voice, like he was whispering in her ear. Jester startled and whipped around with a gasp but they were still leaning over the table, discussing something in hushed tones. Caleb’s low, accented voice continued in her ear.

_“Excellent job. The last clue is back on your floor. Someplace you or Yasha could hold your own, but where someone like me would fear to tread.”_

Jester bit her lip and thought for a moment, worrying the paper in her pocket between her fingers. Back on her floor…her, Fjord’s and Beau’s rooms were there. Somewhere she and Yasha would be fine, but Caleb wouldn’t…? Let’s see… _Yasha and I are both…women? But he didn’t say Veth. We both…have gods? But that’s Caduceus too. And Fjord._ Jester went over the rooms of her friends in her mind. They all had sitting rooms and bedrooms. Fjord had a meditation room, she had an art studio, Beau had…what did Beau have? A training room? There was also Beau’s bedroom, another place Caleb probably wouldn’t want to be found. Either way, signs were pointing to Beau’s room.

Jester hurried out of the library in a swirl of skirts and floated back up to _her_ floor, as Caleb had put it. She knocked rapidly on Beau’s door and the monk answered after a minute, furrowing her brow in confusion.

“Jes? What’s wrong?”

“Can I come in?”

“Uh, sure-“

Jester pushed through the doorway and immediately dashed for the training room.

“Jes, what’s going on?”

“Did you see anything _weird_ in here?” Jester called as she scanned the walls.

“Weird? Like weird how?” Beau replied, standing in the door between the training room and sitting room.

“Like…I don’t know, like something that doesn’t belong here.”

“I…no, I’ve had this place for like five minutes. Why? Do you think Caleb’s like spying on us or something?”

“No, it’s not that.” Beau came up next to her and crossed her arms.

“Then what the fuck is it? Nice dress, by the way.” Jester felt her traitorous face growing warm again.

“Thanks. Look, so you know how I did that scavenger hunt for Travelercon? Well I really wanted to do it but I couldn’t because I was like running the whole thing. I found a note in my room and Caleb made like a little scavenger hunt for me so I could get to do it, but I’m pretty sure the next clue is in here and now I’m stuck.” Jester explained the clues she’d gotten so far and Beau nodded slowly, eyebrows raising steadily the whole time.

“So…want me to help you look?”

“Yes and I’ll share the prize with you if we find it!”

“What’s the prize?” Beau asked, pulling aside the blue sashes on the walls and spinning the arms on her training post. Jester paused and realized she wasn’t sure.

“Well, I don’t know, actually. But something good, probably. And it’s fun anyway even if there’s not really a prize.” The two women searched silently for a few minutes, unfolding wraps and unrolling bamboo mats, but no luck.

“Hey, that’s pretty nice of him to do that,” Beau observed, sneaking an unsubtle glance at Jester. “He’s been, uh, doing a lot of stuff like that for you lately.” Jester’s heart started to beat faster, inexplicable nerves twisting her stomach.

“Yeah,” she said, faking more casualness than she felt. “It’s nice.”

“Far be it from me to give anyone advice on interpersonal anything but…I don’t know, just think when you find a _friend_ like that…that’s pretty special, y’know?”

“Yeah,” Jester mumbled, distracted by her search. Beau pulled out one of the arms of her dummy and peered into the slot.

“Hey, I think I found something!”

Jester ran over and kneeled down next to Beau. Sure enough, there was a tiny, impossibly small folded piece of paper inside.

Jester yanked it out and unfolded it. Light began to swirl from the surface, like paint dropped into water, and images floated around the two of them in the air, like the light show Caleb had put on for them in the dome on Rumblecusp.

An illusory silhouette of Jester appears to her left, and she hears her own voice, coming from the paper.

“Yeza! It’s Jester! I’m with Veth and we’re looking for you!”

An image of Yeza, dirty and hugging his knees, appears, and his face lights up when he hears her voice.

“I’m keeping an eye on you, Thoreau!” Jester’s voice says menacingly, and the Lionett patriarch comes into view, sitting on the toilet and looking around frantically. Even Beau couldn’t help but belly laugh at that.

“Yasha…we’re going to Zadash. We miss you.” Yasha, kneeling in the cold, grey forest near the Amber Road, lifts her head and smiles despite the tears in her eyes.

“Mama! I’m safe but we had to go really quickly…I love you! Take care of Nugget and I’ll see you soon!” Marion Lavorre shoots up out of bed, breathes an audible sigh of relief and holds her sapphire necklace to her chest.

The illusion went on and on. Some of the moments were funny, like her aggressive messages to the Gentleman that had Caleb’s illusory Babenon freezing in panic, or the confused Plank King. Mostly, though, people smiling. Letting out sighs of relief. Faces lighting up with hope and happiness. Orly, the Bright Queen, Essek, eventually even the Gentleman, all with a laugh or a smile brought to their faces or comfort in their eyes at the sound of her voice.

The image eventually shifted and Jester saw the entryway to the tower, the nine stained glass windows that represented the different schools of magic. The illusion honed in on the Evocation window, the school of Sending, and faded away.

Jester was speechless. She folded the parchment very, very carefully and put it in her other pocket.

“Holy shit, Jes. He put a _lot_ of work into this.” Jester, for once, didn’t have anything to say. Beau just stared at her.

“…Yeah,” Jester eventually whispered. Her heart felt like a hummingbird’s wings and her face was so warm she knew it was visible to Beau. She wanted to get out of here. “Thanks for helping me find this I’ll share the prize with yoooou!” Jester called as she ran out the door of Beau’s room. Beau laughed but thankfully, didn’t follow.

Jester, practically vibrating with excitement, floated down to the entryway and ran over to the Evocation window. The rainbow glass was lit from inside and glowed orange warm light on her face. She pressed her hands against any place on the window she could reach, trying to trigger something - it was supposed to be right here, wasn’t it? Jester felt something brush against her ankle and looked down. Frumpkin mewled softly and brushed up against the stonework under the window, where one brick was slightly flatter than the others.

“Thanks, Frumpkin,” Jester giggled. She kneeled down and dug into the stone with her fingertips, until a tiny hidden door opened on a hinge.

The golden dick was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen. Jester yanked it out of its hiding spot and beamed, raising it in the air like a victory torch.

“Ha! Yes! I found it! Go tell your dad _that,_ Frumpkin.” Frumpkin looked back up at her. His irises flashed blue and Jester felt herself blush again as the fey cat wandered off.

She felt ridiculous, being so weirdly emotional over a gold dick statue, but her stomach was roiling and her breath was short. Jester hardly even noticed her body floating up off the ground as she willed herself back up to her room. Floating past the great hall, the salon, Jester stared off into the distance as clarity washed over her, unclogging her mind like waves sweeping the detritus from a tide pool. The voice inside that had been insisting that Caleb would’ve done something so thoughtful for any of them, that she wasn’t special, was quiet suddenly, and suddenly she could hear clearly the thoughts that voice was responding to.

_He didn’t do this for any of the rest of them. He did it for you._

Moments flashed before her eyes, as sharp as if they were happening to her now.

_Kneeling in the sand, tears falling from her eyes. She can’t let anyone see her like this…_

_“You okay over there?”_

_“Yeah, I’m fine! I’m just, I’m just drawing!” Jester turns and tries to wipe away the tears and put on a happy smile, but Caleb already saw._

_“I can’t speak for him. But you do have us. So whatever you land on, Jester…we’ll make it happen.”_

She remembered the way those words made her feel. It didn’t clear the storm from her heart, but at least she wasn’t walking through it alone.

_Sea spray roaring around them, she grabs Caleb’s arm and helps him balance in a last ditch attempt to Polymorph the dragon turtle. Holding onto her own Polymorph so hard she can’t tell how much of the damp on her face is seawater or sweat. He dunks down into the water and Jester knows a second before he pops up that he’s done it, because she loses her spell._

_“It’s a slug, let’s go!”_

_Jester whoops with the adrenaline of victory and grips the wizard’s arm tighter. He grins at her with unrestrained glee, a smile she rarely gets to see and her heart skips in her chest._

Jester didn’t even realize as she floated past her floor.

_“Weeeeeeell…the Traveler isn’t really a god god god-“_

_She feels like she’s going to puke. Her friends are looking at her like she’s crazy. Yasha has her arms crossed, frowning, and even giant Artagan looks a little threatened. They don’t believe her. It’s just like when she was little and Mama never believed her about him and-_

_She catches Caleb’s eye. His face is…neutral, at least. Curious. She hangs onto that gaze even when he isn’t looking at her, like a lifeline, as she explains the whole situation. He doesn’t trust Artagan but he trusts her. The wavering in her voice fades. She trusts Artagan and that’s worth something._

CRACK.

Pain bloomed in the back of Jester’s skull as she hit the top of the bronze iris between the seventh and eighth floors and she cursed loudly. Fortunately the floating in the tower was only as fast as Featherfall, so she wasn’t injured, but it sure didn’t feel great.

Jester grumbled and rubbed the top of her head. Interesting…she hadn’t been up to that floor on the tour.

“Auf!”

Nothing. Jester frowned at it and tapped it. Nothing.

“Jester?”

Jester looked down and Caleb was peering out of the study doorway at her. Now she looked like she was being snoopy… Caleb had his shirtsleeves rolled up and there were smears of some kind of opalescent blue oil on his hands. _That would be a great paint color._ She pretended to herself that’s why she was staring.

“Are you alright?” Caleb asked softly, cocking his head to the side. His eyes drifted to the golden dick in her hand. “Ah! You found it!” Jester shook herself out of her thoughts.

“Y-yeah! Sorry, I just hit my head on the ceiling.”

“Oh, are you having trouble with the, ah, transport mechanism?” Caleb disappeared into the study for a moment and Jester willed herself down onto the landing. He reappeared with a scrap of paper in his hand and a graphite stick between his teeth. He put the paper up against the doorjamb and turned back to her.

“Is it not responding to your thoughts? I am sure I can fix it.”

_Well, it brought me up here, so technically I guess it was responding to my thoughts._

“Uh. No, it’s um, it’s fine actually, I just wasn’t paying attention.” She shrugged. She’d never felt this tongue-tied in front of him before but the little seed pearl of a realization that became so obvious on her journey from the first floor felt like it was lodged in her throat.

“Oh! Alright then. Ah, did you enjoy the scavenger hunt?” Caleb smiled shyly and gestured with his graphite at her trophy. Jester beamed, feeling herself gradually relax into the same easy closeness she was used to with him. _It’s just Caleb. Same Caleb._

“Yeah, it was really fun. Thank you, Cayleb, it was really sweet of you to do this for me.” Caleb flushed bright red and waved a hand.

“It was no trouble.”

“No, you put a lot of work into it. I, um, I really appreciate it.” Caleb opened and closed his mouth a few times before he found his words.

“Well, nothing is too much work if it’s for you.” Warmth flowered in Jester’s chest and she felt the air leave her lungs again. “I, um, hope you like the trophy. What are you planning to do with it?”

“Wouldn’t _you_ like to know?” Jester teased, waggling her eyebrows. Caleb turned even redder and Jester giggled. “I’m just kidding. I’ll probably put it in my art studio for inspiration. Is this my prize?”

“Oh! Nein, I have that - um, let me just get cleaned up and I can get it.”

“Can I see what you’re doing in there?”

“Sure, it’s probably a bit boring, but of course you are welcome in here.” Caleb gestured for her to come in and she followed. The room had a large slate on the wall with runes and Zemnian scribbled on it, and a large circular slate set into the floor. He led her over to a table with paper scattered across it. The table was set with oils and unguents of different colors, a spool of silver wire, what appeared to be a squid tentacle suspended in blue slime, a vial of pitch… The wood surface was already spattered with drops of ink, some of that blue oil that was still on Caleb’s hands, streaked through with viscous violet liquid.

Caleb was explaining that he was working on a spell, with Yeza’s help, that would potentially allow him to distill magical energies into a liquid form, like Yeza had done with dunamancy for Vess, and boost the magic users in the group when they’d tapped out their own reserves. She tried to follow as he explained the details, but none of this was her area of expertise, so she focused on making appropriate listening faces and noises at the right time. Still, Jester found his excitement infectious, and was smiling right along with him as he gestured wildly and showed her his notes.

“Ah - I’m sorry, I am boring you.” He looked a little sheepish as he shuffled his notes into a pile.

“No! No, not at all!” Jester laid a hand on his forearm, the tiny spot of contact like lightning, his skin warm under her palm. “No, it is super interesting, Cayleb, I just don’t necessarily understand all the details.” She smiled apologetically.

“Right, of course - that makes sense. You are very clever, so, um, sometimes I forget you were not trained as an arcanist.”

“No, I don’t know anything about this stuff. But I’m always interested in what you’re working on.” She beamed up at him. “Buuuuuut, you said something about a prize, Mister Widogast, and I more than earned it!” Jester tapped him on the chest playfully with the dick and he laughed. She could get addicted to that low, throaty sound.

“Ja, of course. You certainly have. Let me just clean up a bit. It is probably time for dinner soon anyway.”

Jester leaned on the table and watched as he went to a basin set with a spigot and scrubbed the oil off his hands. There was something that felt intimate about this, watching him work. Like she was seeing something nobody else did. Domestic. That was the word. It felt domestic. Caleb turned away from the spigot and, distracted, ran a hand through his hair and Jester giggled when she saw the streak of blue he left on his forehead.

“Yasha will be very flattered that you’re copying her tattoos,” Jester said. Caleb furrowed his brow in confusion.

“ _Was?”_ Jester walked over with a grin and licked her thumb to wet it. She stood on her toes and rubbed at the spot on Caleb’s forehead, ignoring her own hammering heart and his fierce blush.

“You’ve got a little shmudge,” she murmured. It wasn’t coming off easily… Jester went to lick her thumb again but Caleb’s hand shot up and grabbed her wrist.

“Ah! Not - do not put that in your mouth.” She was so dizzy with the sudden contact that she couldn’t even think of a good innuendo before Caleb pulled his hand back. “S-sorry, I just - you would get ill.” Jester nodded and started to scrub her own hands clean in the basin.

“Oh, okay, well, thank you for saving me from a terrible fate.”

“Ah, not so terrible, but still. Avoidable. Let me bring you your prize after dinner? I should probably bathe if I’ve got this oil all over me. But I will bring it up to you after?”

“Okay! Thank you Caaaayleb,” she sang, and skipped back out onto the landing.

When Yasha called up for dinner a short time later, Jester floated into the dining room and spun around so the other women could see her new dress.

“Ooh, Jester!” Veth called. “Is that new? I love it!”

“It’s really pretty, Jester,” Yasha said softly, smiling.

“Thaaaanks, guys!” She did another twirl. “I found it in the wardrobe.”

“But I thought we couldn’t take anything out of here?” Veth asked, furrowing her brow.

“We can’t,” Caleb’s voice came from the entryway. He was freshly dressed and shaven, blue stains gone from his skin, but his hair was still damp and Jester caught herself staring for a second too long. _Walking around like that should be illegal._ “Why?”

“Jester found clothes in her wardrobe.” Jester blushed as Caleb’s gaze drifted over her for, she thought, also just a second too long. He flushed a little.

“Ah, yes, well. Our little blue friend enjoys being fashionable, so I thought I would see if I could make clothes to go in the wardrobe. I was thinking, Jester, because you order yourself custom clothes a lot, that if you wanted to have something made, you could use the wardrobe in your room to try it out first. Ah, if you tell me what you are thinking of. I mean, I can do this for you ladies also, if you like, I can do it for any of us. I wanted to try it out with Jester’s first to see if I could do it.”

Beau raised a very aggressive eyebrow at Jester and smirked; Jester narrowed her eyes in response and they sat down to dinner. It was just as enchanting as she had imagined it might be. The fey cats were delightful, the food was delicious - she hadn’t eaten a thing at Trent’s, her protective fury causing her stomach to twist up in knots - and Jester was warm, happy and relaxed by the time they finished.

When she went back up to her room, she changed back into her soft plain cotton dress, sat on the edge of her bed and looked at the dick statue. Artagan would love it. Shame she couldn’t show him. Her heart swelled with pride and affection for how far Caleb had come in the time they’d all been together. From talking with Nott about running away and not letting himself get invested in them, to building _this._ A love letter to the whole Nein.

_Knock knock knock._

Jester jumped up and went to the door, where Caleb was standing awkwardly.

“I believe I promised you something, Miss Lavorre, ja?” Jester beamed.

“Yes, you did, show me! Come in, come in!”

Jester pushed Caleb inside and shut the door behind him. She bounced on the balls of her feet and squealed as he pulled out a small round box made of dark wood, with delicate gold filigree like lace on the outside. Jester gasped and flounced down on the couch with it. Caleb perched on the edge next to her.

“Cayleb it’s beautiful!”

“Ah, the box - I did not make the box, I saw it in the curiosities shop in Rexxentrum. I did not know yet what I would do with it but then, when I got this idea - I thought you would like it. Open it, open it.”

Jester flipped the hinged top open and light, just like from the clue in Beau’s room, swam in the cup of her hands. Rich tones, red and purple and gold, spun and danced in the box. Then, the colors came together and a miniature of her mother, surrounded by swirling lights, appeared, and the most beautiful sound she’d heard in weeks, her mother’s clear, dulcet voice, emerged. The last time they’d seen her perform, this was what she sang.

Jester was speechless for the entire five minutes of Marion’s song. When the illusion ended, Jester stayed staring at the box, barely aware of the wet on her cheeks. Finally tearing her eyes away and putting the box on the side table, she turned to look at Caleb, mouth still open. He searched her face anxiously.

“Do you like it? I can change it-”

“Do I _like_ it?” Jester laughed, the tears giving a slightly hysterical quality to her voice. “Cayleb, I love it. This is…this is so, so beautiful. And thoughtful. _Thank_ you.”

“I made it, um, before I thought of the scavenger hunt, and I thought it would make a good prize. This way, ah, you can have her with you wherever you go. Not as good as the real thing but the illusion will last until it is dispelled. And if you get tired of this one I can put a different one in it. And I did not make it in the mansion, it came from outside. So…it is yours. You can take it anywhere.”

Jester’s heart pounded in her chest. She wiped the tears from her eyes with her sleeve and Caleb moved to get up.

“Oh - I’m sorry, I did not mean to upset you, let me get you a cloth-“

This time she was the fast one. Her hand reached out and snatched his wrist before he could walk away. With one swift movement, she yanked him back down onto the couch, grabbed his face in her hands and pulled him in for a desperate kiss. He was completely frozen against her lips for what felt like an eternity and icy panic gripped her heart - she’d misread things entirely, he didn’t want her like that, she was a foolish young girl and he was older and more serious and - and then he softened, kissing her back, shifting the angle of his head so their noses wouldn’t press together. His hand came up to cup her cheek and he deepened the kiss, guiding her gently into a more favorable position.

When they finally broke apart, the first thought Jester had was: _that was my first kiss._ She’d thought the thing underwater with Fjord was her first kiss, but now, now she’d had a real one and that was _not_ a real first kiss. And she wanted a second, and a third, and a fourth.

“Jester?” Caleb’s eyes were wide and his face so, so close to hers.

“I’m sorry-“

“No, I am-“

“Wait - I’m not.” Caleb furrowed his brow and waited. “I mean - if you didn’t want it. Then I’m sorry, because I did something you didn’t want. But if you did, then I’m not sorry at all. I wanted to do it.” She clasped his hands in hers. “It took me a really long time to realize, um, how I fe-feel about you. And today, it just hit me all at once. I do want this. You.” Caleb searched her face and swallowed thickly.

“You are sure? Because…Jester, I am too selfish a man to say no to this.”

“I’m sure, Cayleb, please - trust me to know what I want.” Caleb nodded slowly. “Kiss me again,” she blurted out and his warm hands were on her cheeks and pulling her into another kiss. Jester wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back, drinking in every second, every movement and brand new sensation. She’d already known her romance novels weren’t necessarily _accurate_ , but she had no idea they had done such a terrible job of describing what _this_ felt like. Her whole body was alive, warm and wanting, and she thought if her heart was beating any faster it would vibrate right out of her throat.

_He’s done this before. He’s kissed lots of people probably. You haven’t. What if you suck? Maybe you’re an awful kisser. Gods, that would be so embarrassing. He’d never tell you if you were._

Jester tried to stop thinking and lose herself in the feeling of kissing Caleb; his tongue ran shyly over her bottom lip and she opened her mouth wider. She giggled nervously at the feeling of his tongue exploring her mouth and he smiled against her lips.

“Am I that terrible at this?” Caleb murmured between kisses, his tone teasing.

“No! No, you aren’t…am I?”

“You are delightful.”

Jester laughed and pulled him closer, leaning back on the arm of the couch. He went readily, and they quickly settled into an easy, comfortable half-sitting position, kissing like they had all the time in the world. Eventually, Caleb’s mouth drifted to her jaw, her neck, and Jester was dizzy with how _good_ it felt when he ran his tongue just under her chin and nibbled her ear. Dimly, she knew she wasn’t reciprocating as much as she could be, just letting him lavish attention over the column of her throat, but based on what she was pretty sure was a healthy erection pressing into her hip, he was enjoying himself as much as she was. Her hands were everywhere as she pet his back, his shoulders, learning his body with the tips of her fingers. He hummed happily when she ran her fingers through his hair so she kept one hand up near his neck to play with his curls; he shied away from her touch on his scarred forearms and so she avoided them. Caleb, for his part, kept his warm hands mostly on her waist, his thumbs rubbing small circles into her hipbones. He was cautious about touching her, moving his hands slowly to give her time to object, as he eventually slid them up her sides, thumbs just brushing the outer curve of her breasts, around her back. One hand got brave and ran over her thigh briefly, but didn’t stay very long. Jester found herself wanting him to touch her there again, and a lot of other places besides. Soon, every shift of his thigh between her legs sent a pulse of warmth through her core, and Jester didn’t want to stop doing this, but she very much wanted to start doing something else.

“Jester...” Gods, she wanted to hear him breathlessly whisper her name like that again. Caleb mouthed over her neck, tongue and teeth and lips in equal measure, and laced his fingers in one of her hands. “Jester, I want to make you happy. Tell me what would make you happy.”

“What do you mean?”

Caleb propped himself up so he could see her face better and kissed the knuckles on the hand he was holding before looking her in the eye again.

“I mean, ah, I do not mean to be presumptuous but um, typically, this sort of activity is a preamble to other things and- I mean, if this is all you want right now, or, or ever, I would indulge you happily all night long. I, um, suppose what I am asking is, if you are interested in any of those, ah, other things? Please don’t think I’m unsatisfied, or, um, pushing you to anything. I just…I want to give you exactly what you want and nothing that you don’t.”

Jester worried her bottom lip between her teeth. She knew she wanted more. How much more exactly she wasn’t sure, but she was sure that she was aching and wet and completely smitten with the quiet, beautiful, kind man in front of her.

“I don’t really know what I want,” she said honestly. “I mean…I’ve never done any of it.” Caleb nodded slowly and kissed the corner of her mouth.

“Do you want to stop here? We can just do this, as long as you like.” Jester shook her head.

“No, I - I want to keep going, but I just…don’t know what I like or don’t like.” Caleb was quiet for a moment, just playing with her hair.

“I hate to ask this again, Jester, but you are one hundred percent positive that you want to do these things for the first time with _me_?” Jester patted his arm and started to sit up.

“Maybe we should talk about this.”

“Ah, ja, I think we should.”

“Is that okay? Is that like, ruining the mood?” Caleb shook his head vigorously, sitting up across from her and taking one of her hands. His thumb rubbed over the back of her hand in a way she found comforting.

“No. At least not for me. I think I will be more in the mood if I know we are both on the same page.” He was already flushed pink, but his cheeks darkened. Jester, who had no experience but also no shyness around talking about sex, thought it was adorable that just saying “in the mood” made him blush.

“I really, really, really like you,” Jester blurted. The words came tumbling out before she could really think about them. “I know that probably seems like it’s coming out of nowhere but I think I’ve felt this way for a long time and I just didn’t realize it because I always thought love was just like in my books, you know, but it _isn’t_ really like that at all, and I only realized that because, because you know I thought I really liked Fjord, but I really liked the _idea_ of him, y’know, because he was like that storybook hero that I grew up wanting, but then I realized he wasn’t really that person and maybe that person isn’t actually real and even if he was, he isn’t what I want-“ Jester took a huge gulp of air “-and what I _actually_ want is someone who believes in me and trusts me and supports me and makes me feel like, like they think I can do anything and that…” She slowed as she searched for the right words. “…That makes me feel like I can be the best version of _me._ And that I’m enough. How I am. And that I don’t have to make everyone else happy or hide the ugly, sad, scared parts of me just because I don’t want to bring everyone else down. You make me feel like that. It just…took me a long time to realize that…that’s what love feels like.”

Caleb was quiet for a long, long, _long_ moment. Jester tried to focus on her hand in his, the feeling of his thumb rubbing circles on the back of her hand. He hadn’t stopped doing that, he hadn’t let go, so it was okay. She just needed to give him time to think.

“I have been a little in love with you for a very long time, Jester Lavorre.” A huge smile bloomed on Jester’s face.

“Only a _little_?” She teased, taking his other hand with hers.

“…Perhaps more than a little.” Jester leaned in and kissed him again, soft and chaste. Mostly. A question that she didn’t want to touch tickled the back of her mind and though it felt like pushing on a bruise, she had to ask it.

“Um…can I ask you something, though?”

“You can ask me anything.”

“Astrid.” Caleb’s face fell, immediately, and Jester felt awful for bringing her up. “I just want to know, um…that’s over, right?”

“Yes,” he said, without hesitation. “Yes, that part of my life is over.” Caleb kissed the tips of her fingers. “I have a fondness for her still…she was my first love, and I think, um…very much like you were saying about Fjord, ja? You liked what you associated with him, the missing pieces you filled in on your own. I miss who I was when I was with her. Not what I _did_ then. I did not have the weight on my shoulders that I do now. I miss _that_. When I see her, or speak to her, I remember that. But I do not miss _her._ And she is not the girl I knew. Just as I am not Bren anymore.” Jester nodded.

“Yeah, I think I understand that.”

“There is no part of my heart that is not yours, Jester, if you will have it.”

Jester pulled him in for a kiss that she hoped communicated everything she wanted to say but didn't have the words for. They kissed like that for a long few minutes, interrupted only by breathless giggles, but gradually, kissing turned to proper making out and they were propped against the arm of the couch again, heavy breath filling the space between their kisses.

“I want to have sex with you,” Jester gasped, and Caleb froze and lifted his head from her collarbone, where he had been placing a very lovely indigo hickey.

“….Are you sure?” Jester nodded vigorously.

“I mean - only if you want to,” she said, suddenly shy. Caleb dropped his head back down to rest on Jester’s shoulder and she felt more than heard his low laugh.

“There is nothing I want more than to make love to you, Jester. I just want to be sure that this is what _you_ want, not what you think I want.”

“Cayleb,” Jester said sternly, putting her hands on his cheeks and lifting his head to look at her. “What did I say earlier?” He blushed.

“Trust you to know what you want.”

“And do you?”

“Ja, I do,” he whispered. Jester kissed his forehead and leaned hers against it.

“I feel very safe with you,” she murmured. Caleb didn’t say anything for a minute.

“I…that means…so much to me, Jester. Um…we can do that, but I know this is all new for you, so…if you change your mind, or I do something you don’t like, even if we are in the middle of something you must tell me right away, ja?” Jester nodded.

“I will. Now if you gave me this-“ she gestured to the hickey on her neck “-I think you should have one to match.”

“I would like that,” Caleb breathed. Jester grinned and started kissing his neck, trying to mirror what he’d done that she liked so much. She was rewarded with soft whimpers and sighs that she only wanted to hear more of. When she found a spot that she liked, she sealed her mouth around it and sucked, scraping her teeth against the skin gently. The groan Caleb made went straight between her legs and she moaned, rolling her hips against his thigh in a way she was too turned on to be embarrassed about. Pulling away, she inspected her handiwork, a dark bruise blooming on Caleb’s pale skin. It made her feel _powerful._

At the first purposeful, cautious skim of his hands on her breasts, Jester sucked in a breath, surprised, and arched up into the touch.

 _“More_ ,” she sighed, unable to stop the whimper that escaped her lips when Caleb cupped her breasts more firmly and started mouthing at her neck again. It was a marvel to Jester how much better even her most sensitive, pleasurable spots felt when someone else was touching them, especially someone she loved. She shivered with delight thinking of how his hands might feel elsewhere.

Caleb’s thumbs found her nipples rather quickly, under the thin cotton of her dress, and Jester couldn’t help a full on moan when he started teasing them.

“May I?” He whispered, one hand going to the first button on her dress. With those blue eyes looking at her and his hands on her like that, Jester thought he could ask her for just about anything and she’d say yes. She reached up and popped the first two buttons herself, exposing her tattoo and the tops of her freckled breasts.

“Gods, Jester, you’re so beautiful,” Caleb murmured, trailing his kisses down to her collarbone. He spent a lot of time tracing her diamond tattoo with his tongue, letting his fingers dance over the soft skin of her breasts.

“You like my tattoo?” Jester teased, undoing another button.

“On you, it reminds me of looking at the stars,” he replied, finally leaving it behind to devote his full attention to her breasts. She let her head fall back against the arm of the couch and sighed with satisfaction as he kissed the soft skin, nipping gently, and then doing it over and over again when she made a noise he must have liked. Caleb slipped his fingers under the bands of her bra and looked back up at her for permission.

“ _Please_ , Cayleb. Don’t make me beg.”

Jester didn’t miss the sharp intake of breath when she said that and flashed a wicked grin. Something to explore another time. He slipped the straps down her shoulders and Jester felt very suddenly exposed, a feeling she hadn’t anticipated because she’d been naked around her friends before - especially when they traveled on the road, nobody’s body was a secret, but this was different. Now he was looking, and looking on purpose, and she cared if he thought her breasts had a nice shape or if her nipples were weird. Caleb must have felt her tense up because he pulled the linen cups of her bra back up to cover her.

“We can go slower.”

“No, I just - will you take yours off too?”

“My shirt?” Jester nodded. “Of course. Though I cannot help but feel sorry that your view will not be near as lovely as mine.” She didn’t think that was true, but she just smiled instead of saying so. He wouldn’t believe it anyway, if she said it. Better to show it.

Caleb sat up and pulled his shirt off over his head with one easy motion and leaned back in to be against her again. Immediately, she felt better, not being the only one in a state of undress, and the sensation of his hot skin on her chest, under her hands as she brought them up to hold his shoulders again, was so intoxicating that any voice of doubt or insecurity was drowned out. She could feel scars under her fingers, small ones and large, from all their adventures, some that she remembered healing herself, even though she never fancied herself much of a healer. Her love written into his skin before she’d even known it was there. What was _please don’t die_ but another way to say _I love you_?

His shoulders were dusted with freckles and she wanted to kiss every one of them, and the copper hair on his chest tickled the sensitive skin of her breasts. Jester never wanted to leave the warm embrace she was in now, but the ache between her legs had other, somewhat mutually exclusive suggestions that sounded better and better the further Caleb’s mouth drifted down her clavicle.

Wordlessly, she opened another button and pushed the fabric of her bra aside herself, and gods, that sound he made felt so _good_ against her skin. Jester found herself very glad these rooms were soundproof, when his tongue found her nipple for the first time. She tightened her legs around his waist and tangled her fingers in his hair as her head dropped down to the arm of the couch. There was no possibility that any other part of her body - except her very, very insistent cunt - could pull her attention away from her breasts; anything that needed her brain to send signals to her muscles, like holding her head up or keeping her tail under control, was just going to have to wait. Somewhere in her awareness, she heard her tail thwapping against the side of the couch like crazy, but she couldn’t string a thought together that didn’t involve Caleb’s warm, wet mouth on her nipples and the eager, hungry noises he was making as he showered his attention on them. Her own gasps and whines only seemed to encourage him, and she started babbling away as she ran her nails over his scalp,

“Fuck, that feels so _good,_ please- don’t stop, gods…yes! I _like_ that, fuck, Cayleb-“

When his teeth closed around the sapphire bud of her nipple, she moaned loudly and her hands clenched tight around handfuls of red curls. The choked groan he made went right to her cunt and he sucked on her harder; Jester felt his erection jerk against her thigh. She was strangely proud of herself, for discovering something he apparently liked so much, and she couldn’t wait to figure out _everything_ that made him react like that. She did it again, this time on purpose, and the noise became a desperate keen that she absolutely wanted to hear again and again. Deciding to let herself simmer down a little, Jester leaned back with a pleased hum and enjoyed the explorations of his mouth on her breasts, but soon she was itching to do it again and hear that sound that made a pulse of warmth bloom between her legs. This time she pulled hard enough to lift his head from her chest and got another beautiful, broken moan. She moved to kiss him but paused for just a second to look - Jester didn’t think anything could be hotter than his blue eyes looking up at her from between her clothed breasts, asking permission to undress her, but she was wrong. He looked divine like this, flushed and wrecked already, eyes dark with lust and lips red and swollen from use. It was unfortunate that she didn’t have his keen memory, but somehow she still didn’t think she’d forget this sight any time soon. Snapping out of her lustful thoughts, Jester pulled him in for a bruising kiss, hoping he could feel how bad she wanted him, and when they broke apart, he leaned his forehead against hers, panting.

“Can I take you to bed?” Jester asked with a devilish gleam in her eye.

“You can have me anywhere you want, _Liebling._ ”

“I think you’re going to regret making that promise,” Jester laughed, but she stood anyway and pulled Caleb up by the hand. He couldn’t resist bending down to kiss her again with a giddy smile and she pressed their bodies close, her hands sliding down his back until she had his thighs firmly in her hands.

“Hands on my shoulders,” she instructed, and Caleb looked confused but complied. Jester beamed and hoisted his legs up around her waist, catching Caleb by surprise, and Jester couldn’t help but laugh at the yelp that flew out of him.

“I’ve got you!” Jester reassured through her giggles, and he looked at her dumbstruck, now firmly in her arms with his slender legs wrapped around her waist. “I told you, I’m _taking you_ to bed.”

It did take them much longer to get there than if they’d walked, but Jester thought she was having a _lot_ more fun. She was sure they looked absurd, if anyone could see them; he was a full eight inches taller than her, and had to bend down even more to kiss her in this position; he was shirtless and the front of her dress was half open; she kept accidentally hitting doors and furniture with his legs because she forgot how long they were behind her. But through the stumbling and the mishaps and the kisses they both couldn’t stop laughing, and Jester thought she could do this until her arms gave out if it meant she got to keep hearing that lovely sound.

Eventually, though, they reached her bedroom, and Jester felt the air leave her lungs when she dropped him down on her bed. This was real, it was happening, she was going to have sex with Caleb in the bed that he made for her, and gods he looked so _good_ in it, like he belonged there. She let her gaze drag over his long, lean form and made an approving hum. His pink flush went all the way down to his sternum and she wanted to follow his freckles with her tongue all the way down to the auburn trail of hair that disappeared beneath his belt.

“You look like an angel,” Jester breathed, and then blushed hard when she realized she’d said that out loud. He laughed and reached for her hand to pull her down next to him.

“Hardly.”

Jester didn’t have time to argue with that before his mouth was on hers again. With a mind of its own, her tail curled around his calf and Caleb started in surprise before he realized it was just her. As he kissed her, his fingers drifted down to the coil of her tail and stroked over it gently, cautiously. Jester shivered at the sensation rippling from the spot he touched her up to the base of her spine and let out a - _purr?_ Jester clapped a hand over her mouth and Caleb stared at her in shock. The air was still for a second, before they both dissolved into a fit of laughter.

“I’ve never done _that_ before,” she gasped through bursts of giggles. Caleb smirked and stroked the length of her tail, coiled around his leg, harder this time. Another deep purr bubbled up out of Jester’s chest and she couldn’t help laughing again. Another thing that was different from her books. In her books, sex was always very serious, and dramatic, fits of passion and angst and uncontrolled lust. As she was learning, sex could also be funny, and _fun_. Sex with Caleb was _fun._ She didn’t know it could be like that.

“S-sorry, I didn’t know that would happen.” Caleb lightened his touch, his fingers just barely brushing over her velvety skin now, giving her delightful shivers, and leaned in to suck another hickey into her neck.

“Mmmm, I like it.” Jester moaned when his teeth found their mark, worrying another splotch into her skin.

“Y-yeah?” She managed.

“I think it’s very hot.” Gods, she fucking loved him. “Do you like it, though? When I touch your tail like that?” Jester nodded vigorously.

“Fuck, yes.”

“Good to know,” he murmured, guiding her onto her back. She recognized that look in Caleb’s eyes, as he perched over her. It was the same look he had when he found something he needed in a library book, or figured out a new spell. The “wheels turning” look. He was looking at her like she was a new spell he desperately wanted to perfect and it was unexpectedly, devastatingly sexy.

This time, as they were making out, Caleb’s hands didn’t stay on her waist. He held her thighs, which were bracketing his hips, stroking her smooth skin, and eventually, his hands started to push up under the skirt of her dress. Jester had to remind herself to breathe in her impatience, mewling softly, encouraging him without words. Silently, she thanked her past self for wearing her pretty underwear today, delicate lace the color of cream, rather than her very comfortable, but period-stained and ugly, cotton panties. Running the pad of his finger over the lace edge of her underwear, Caleb looked up at her.

“Would you like to be touched here?” Jester paused for a second, to make sure her answer was honest.

“Yes,” she whispered. “Yes, I would really like you to touch me there.” Caleb shifted so he was lying next to her, face to face, one hand still under her skirt and on her hip. Jester’s breath was shaky, with both nerves and lust, and she held Caleb’s free hand with one of hers and his shoulder with the other.

“You are in control here, _Schatz_ ,” he reminded her. “Anything you do not like stops right away.” Jester swallowed thickly.

“I know.”

“Can I kiss you?”

“Please…” She didn’t have to ask twice before his warm lips met hers. These kisses still fed the burning arousal in her stomach, but they were less feverish and desperate. Slow, sensual, precise. No surprises.

Jester almost forgot about the hand under her dress until Caleb’s palm ghosted over the curve of her ass and slowly lifted her leg up around his hip. She could feel his dick pressing against her other thigh - he must be aching by now - but he paid it no mind and she was more than happy to let him spoil her a little before they got there. Without breaking the rhythm of their kissing, he returned to the spot on her hip where he’d been holding her, and she breathed in sharply at the sensation of his fingers barely slipping under the waistband of her panties. He touched her like they had all the time in the world, just stroking against her sensitive skin, letting her get used to the touch there.

 _Breathe. Breathe._ Jester clutched his shoulder harder and deepened her kisses when she felt the first brush of his fingers against her soft curls. Every inch of her skin was alive, sensitive as if lightning was dancing over the surface. When he finally dipped two long fingers into her wet warmth, she gasped and whimpered, high, desperate noises.

“Oh, _Jester_ ,” Caleb groaned, squeezing her hand. “You’re so _warm…”_

“Keep going, _gods_ …“ It _did_ feel so much better, _miles_ better than when she touched herself, and she only wanted more. She wanted _everything_.

“Do you want-“

“Inside, _please-_ “

They were both short of breath, and it only turned Jester on more that her pleasure seemed to arouse Caleb so much. His two fingers stroked her labia and then below until they were coated in her slick. Jester’s cunt was so wet that his touch was almost frictionless, but her thighs started shaking when she felt the tip of one finger circling her entrance. He was being very cautious with her, very gentle, which sober Jester appreciated, but lust-drunk Jester didn’t want cautious, she wanted him in her _now._

“You can just finger me, Cayleb!”

“Are you sure, _Schatz_? This is new for you-“ Jester had to resist the urge to roll her eyes and kissed him hard instead.

“You are very cute. Just because you’re the first _person_ I’ve done this with doesn’t mean your fingers are the first ones inside me.”

Comprehension fleeted over his face and he blushed furiously. Jester could clearly see him trying to unfreeze his brain after the inevitable image of her masturbating crossed his mind.

“Oh.”

“So c’mon, you can give me both, I want both.”

“You are a bossy lady,” he teased, kissing the tip of her nose.

“Bossy and very horny and both of those make me impatient.”

“Far be it from me to deny you anything you want,” Caleb murmured, taking her mouth in a burning hot kiss as he pushed both of his long, delightfully talented fingers into her passage. Jester cried out and Caleb looked worried for a split second before her cry trailed off into a happy moan.

“Oh, oh, _fuck_ ,” Jester gasped, her thighs trembling. There was a bit of a burn, though his fingers were slender, because the angle was better and he could reach deeper than she could on her own. It was only a short moment before the burn dulled into a pleasurable stretch. He stayed still, letting her adjust, but when she canted her hips forward with a whimper, he began to circle his fingers, massaging her walls. Jester let go of his hand and grasped his shoulders so hard she thought she might leave scratches, but the thought of Caleb walking around tomorrow with her scratches on his shoulders only sent another wave of wet between her legs. When he started rocking his fingers in and out of her, Jester buried her face in his shoulder and just held on, moaning loudly into the crook of his neck.

“That’s it, beautiful, you are doing so well…you feel so _good,_ baby, I could touch you like this all day. Tell me if this feels good-“

Caleb pressed the heel of his hand against Jester’s clit and she shouted, immediately grinding down onto his palm, looking for more. She was so lost to the overwhelming waves of sensation now that she couldn’t even be self-conscious, and rolled her hips against him, moaning desperately when she found a circular motion she liked.

“Oh, fuck, Jester,” Caleb panted, cupping the back of her head and pressing her closer into his shoulder. “Fuck, that's hot... That’s it, _Liebling,_ just like that, _das ist gut,_ take your pleasure, _zeig mir wie du es magst…_ just do what feels good…” _(that’s good, show me how you like it)_

How was it possible that he sounded even hotter talking dirty to her in a language she didn’t understand? Caleb kept the heel of his hand pressed against her clit and his fingers stroking in and out of her cunt, and Jester rolled her hips against it, chasing her orgasm, high pitched whimpers and squeals escaping from her throat before she could swallow them. She could feel his hips canting against her without his seeming to notice, pressing his erection very close to where she actually wanted it. Her belly was tightening in a familiar way, and her walls were clenching down on Caleb’s fingers, and her limbs were trembling - she was just on the edge.

“Fuck, baby, cum for me,” Caleb groaned in her ear, and the pads of his fingers pressed behind her pubic bone in a way she’d never felt before, and she cried out through her orgasm, bright and hot and better than any she’d ever given herself. Caleb kept fingering her through it, nuzzling and kissing the top of her head and lightening his touch as she came down.

The sound her pussy made as he pulled out was deliciously filthy, and she thought she might pass out when she lifted her head off his shoulder and saw him slide both fingers into his mouth.

“Taste good?” Jester mumbled, her tone teasing. She was a little self-conscious because, what if it didn’t, but he raised his eyebrows at her with a smirk and finished sucking her slick off his fingers.

“Like blueberries in summer,” he murmured, punctuating the sentence with a kiss to the tip of her ear. She giggled and pushed him over onto his back, reversing their positions from earlier by straddling him.

“Hi,” she breathed. Neither was able to keep a giddy smile off their faces.

“Hi…”

“Is it my turn?” Caleb furrowed his brow.

“ _Was_? For what?”

“To make you feel good.” Jester rolled her hips against his very obvious hard-on and smirked at the moan he choked back. “None of that, let me hear it. Do I get to make _you_ yell now?”

“And how do you propose to do that, Miss Lavorre?” Caleb asked with a grin, bringing his hands to her hips.

“Weeeeell, I guess that depends on what you want. I could stroke you off, or suck your dick?” Caleb blushed bright red.

“Gods, Jester…”

“What?” Jester asked, all faux innocence and batting lashes.

“I just…have never heard an inexperienced woman talk the way you do, _Schatz_.” Jester raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms in a mockery of jealousy.

“Oh? Do you have lots of _experienced_ women offering to blow you, Mister Widogast?” Caleb covered his face with his hands, but Jester could still see his beet red face underneath.

“ _Scheisse_ … You are a wicked woman, you know that?”

“Let me show you just how wicked,” Jester purred, feeling a little ridiculous as she said it but enjoying the very positive involuntary reaction she felt from between his legs. She started to shift so she could position herself more favorably - to do what, she really had no idea yet - but was stopped by Caleb taking her hands.

“Ah, wait- um, believe me when I say that I think I would die on the spot if you, ah, used your mouth on me, but - I think what happens next depends on what _you_ want. If you would still like to make love tonight…well, it is sort of one or the other, ja?”

“Oh. You can’t go more than once?” Jester immediately wondered if that was a rude thing to ask. It probably was… Caleb closed his eyes and laughed silently for a second. He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear with an adoring smile.

“No, sweet thing, most human men cannot,” he said gently. “I mean, it is _possible_ , especially when he is in bed with such an enticing woman. But I cannot guarantee that I could get it up again in a timely fashion, and I want you to have everything you want tonight.” Jester bit her lip and thought for a second. She really wanted to do both, but if she had to pick one…

“Yeah, I want to have sex tonight.”

“You want to, or think we should?”

From anyone else, the question would have been condescending, but she understood what he meant. She’d played her hand a little, revealing her ignorance of the limits of the male human body. Her novels were built into her subconscious in ways she didn’t even see. In the romance stories, yes, after passionate declarations of love, the protagonists always had sex right away, and that “proved” how much they loved each other. Her books were wrong about a lot, but sometimes, what happened in the books and what she wanted _were_ the same thing.

“Because there is nothing wrong, if we wait. It is better to wait, if you want to.” Jester shook her head, certain now.

“No, I don’t want to. And…you don’t either?”

“No, I don’t either.” She bent down and kissed him, nervous and yielding and ready to take this leap. “Let’s give you a little time to recover, ja? Are you still sensitive? Would you like me to go down on you?” Jester shivered involuntarily. She’d heard from so many of the women at the Chateau, from Beau and Yasha and Veth, that that was like the best thing _ever_. She really, _really_ wanted it.

“Yeah, I would like that,” she whispered, a little shy. “If you want to do it.” Caleb stared at her.

“I do not think I could possibly tell you how much I want to do it.”

“Why don’t you show me, then?” Caleb grinned and turned them over so she was on her back again.

“As you wish, of course. Ah, just - one moment. Sorry.” Caleb stood and snapped his fingers and Jester couldn’t see Frumpkin from her place on the bed, but she heard his familiar meow.

“Ja, hi Frumpkin. _Gehen Sie in mein Zimmer und zum Beistelltisch, holen Sie sich ein Fläschchen Öl und einen kleinen rosa Trank, ebenfalls in einem Fläschchen._ ” Jester watched the spotted cat pad off silently.

“And be subtle about it!” Caleb called after him. “Don’t need the whole house knowing, ja?” Frumpkin meowed from the art studio. “I do not care if she offers you pocket bacon, you come straight back here.”

Jester tried to stifle her giggles but Caleb saw them when she turned back and rolled his eyes with a chuckle.

“That cat is incorrigible.”

“Spoiled, you mean.” Caleb stared at her for a second and then shook his head, sorrowful.

“I’m sorry Jester, but I think I must leave now.”

“Nooooo!” Jester pretended to beg, giggling, “I don’t mean it, Frumpkin deserves everything he gets.”

“Ja, that’s more like it.” He kissed the tip of her nose and laid back down with her. “Now, I would very much like to eat your pussy, if you are finished slandering mine.”

“ _Cay-leb!_ Just for that I ought to kick you out of here.”

“Ah, it was low-hanging fruit.”

“Hey,” Jester said softly, and Caleb paused his kisses down her torso to look up at her. “I’m, um, I’m having a really good time.”

“Well I am very glad to hear that. Here I thought it was just me.” He winked and reached up to hold her hand. “I feel that I am a very lucky man to get to share this with you.” She smiled.

“I’m lucky too.”

Caleb didn’t seem to know how to respond to that - she knew how much he struggled accepting the most anodyne of compliments - so he didn’t, instead continuing to work his way kissing down her ribs, her belly, until she could feel his breath through the lace of her underwear. Jester propped herself up and pulled her dress the rest of the way off, but lying there in just her panties didn’t make her feel exposed the way she had before. It felt right.

“May I?” Caleb asked softly, hooking his fingers under the waistband. Jester nodded and he slid her underwear down off her hips, looking her in the eye the whole way.

“Yours too then.” Jester said. Caleb hesitated for a second, but then stood and undid his belt, the buttons on his trousers. Jester’s mouth went dry when she finally saw his flushed red cock and Caleb sighed in relief when the constricting pressure was finally released. She was well aware that she was staring, but she was trying to figure out exactly how that was going to go inside her. She wasn’t stupid, she knew a pussy could stretch to accommodate a whole baby, and she’d seen plenty of dicks before, from far away at least. Caleb was pleasantly average, no surprises, perhaps a bit thicker than most. Nothing she didn’t feel confident she could handle. But it was different when it was staring you in your face and all of a sudden you felt so small and that whole thing was supposed to go inside you?

“ _Schatz_? Is everything okay?” Caleb asked cautiously. “I can- if you don’t like-“ He moved to cover himself with the sheet but Jester stopped him with a hand on his wrist.

“I’m just nervous,” she said quietly. “It’s okay. You’re beautiful, Cayleb. I want to see you.”

He flushed a little at her compliment but returned to lay between her legs, scooping her knees over his shoulders. Jester’s breath was short with anticipation, and she squeezed her eyes shut and forced herself to relax as he started kissing the delicate skin of her inner thighs. He paused to suck a mark into her, and she whimpered so loud at that that he left a trail of violet bruises up her thighs that Jester shuddered with arousal to think would still be there tomorrow.

“Still okay?” Caleb murmured, pressing a kiss to her curls.

“Yes,” Jester sighed happily. She’d never been so relaxed, honestly, and she carded her fingers through Caleb’s hair as he nuzzled into the spot he kissed and breathed in her scent.

“Just, if you don’t think it’s pretty, don’t tell me,” she joked weakly. She didn’t think there was anything weird about her pussy, but what did she know? Caleb paused and stroked her belly.

“Do you have teeth down there I didn’t find the first time?” Caleb teased gently. Jester couldn’t help but laugh at that.

“No!”

“Then it is not possible there is even an inch of you that I do not adore, _Liebling_.” Jester’s heart swelled with affection and she leaned back and sighed.

“Okay. I’m ready.”

Jester closed her eyes and focused on the sensations, the scrape of his stubble on her sensitive skin, his breath warm against her. He kissed her a little more, going back over some of the spots he’d left, but _finally_ , she felt him nudge her thighs a little further apart and spread her with his fingers. A sharp intake of breath made her pop one eye open.

“You are so fucking gorgeous, Jester.”

Jester didn’t have time to say anything before his tongue swept over her cunt, making her moan happily and pull him closer with her legs hooked over his shoulders. Gods, everyone who told her how good this is was _right_.

Caleb’s movements were slow and precise at first, pulling whines and moans out of Jester that filled the room, silent but for her noises, the sounds of shifting linens and Caleb's mouth on her. It felt like it took him forever to start focusing on her clit, but when he did, Jester shouted, writhing and fisting a hand in her own hair to ground herself. Her other hand, still in Caleb’s hair, clenched, and the hungry moan he made rippled straight into her and up her spine.

“Fuck, baby, _yes_ ,” Jester gasped, “like that, that feels so good…”

He hummed in response and started to move a little faster, more confidently, now that he was learning what she liked. Jester propped herself up on her elbows to look down at him and immediately scrapped whatever she’d thought earlier was as hot as he could get, watching him eat her out with a look of pure contentment on his face, eyes shut, all the tension melted out of his expression, _that_ was going in her sketchbook. Praise spilled out of her like water from a spigot; she couldn’t stop it if she wanted to.

“Mmmm, yes, _Cayleb_ , I like that…do it again, baby…fuck, you’re even better at this than I imagined…”

 _That_ got a moan against her clit that made her cry out and grab the sheets with the hand that wasn’t holding onto Caleb’s hair for dear life.

“Do you like that, baby? Knowing I imagined it?” Jester panted. He hummed against her in assent, emboldening her. “Thinking about how I touched myself, imagining you getting down on your knees and pushing my skirts up so you could eat me out?”

His desperate groans and the way his hips pressed into the mattress told her he enjoyed that thought very, very much. Jester was encouraged to keep going, but she didn’t want to overwhelm him - she truly had very little compunction about the words, but revealing her fantasies was a bit different, especially if he didn’t like them too - so she tried something just a little dirtier, testing the waters.

“I also fantasized about you tying my wrists to the bedposts while you did it. That one got me off a lot of times.” Caleb’s head snapped up from between her legs.

 _“Götter, Jester!_ Are you _trying_ to kill me?”

“Do you want me to stop?” Jester teased with a wicked grin.

“ _Scheisse_ , please do _not_ stop-“ and he buried his tongue inside her again, eliciting another yelp that trailed into a moan.

“I can give you another,” Jester gasped, rolling her hips against his tongue. “I was daydreaming once - ah! - while we were on the - mmmm - road, about laying next to you, just - hhhnnh - reading, and maybe your hand would slip under my skirt… I came a _lot_ thinking about - _fuck_ \- where that might go.”

“ _Bitte_ , baby, don’t tease me…” His movements were getting desperate, messy, and she wanted more, she wanted to see how far she could push him with just her words.

“Okay, just - mmmmnn! - one more and I’ll take mercy on you,” Jester panted. “Just a couple nights ago I - hnngh, _baby_ \- got off twice thinking about bringing my duplicate into the mix.”

“ _Jester…”_ Caleb pleaded as pulled his mouth away from her cunt, gasping for breath.

“I’m ready for you, please…”

Caleb climbed back on the bed with her and wiped his wet chin on the corner of the sheet - which should not have been as hot as it was - before he kissed her.

“Just a moment, _Liebling_.” Caleb stared off into the middle distance for a second and she heard the door creak open as Frumpkin padded into the room, two vials in his mouth.

 _“Danke_ ,” Caleb murmured, bending down to take them and dismissing the cat. She watched as he put one aside, and the other, a pink, watery potion, he uncapped and drank down. Jester furrowed her brow.

“What’s that?”

“Hmm? Oh - well, I would prefer not to have to strap a baby tiefling to my back when we go off fighting sea monsters. As funny an image as I’m sure that would be.” Jester blushed and smiled.

“Oh, I guess I didn’t think about that,” she said sheepishly. She could practically see her mother shaking her head. She was the Ruby of the Sea’s daughter, she grew up in a brothel, _obviously_ she knew how to prevent pregnancy and that she never should have forgotten it.

“No worries. Only one of us has to.” Caleb laid down next to her again and drew her in for a long kiss. “How do you want to do this?” Jester worried her bottom lip between her teeth.

“I want to be close to you. And to see you.”

“Okay. Would you like to be on top? That way you can set the pace?” Jester nodded, still biting her lips nervously. She straddled him, a rush of arousal blowing through her at the feeling of his cock against her cunt, and Caleb’s sigh of pleasure. He handed her the other vial - oil, to ease the way.

“Your pace,” Caleb reminded her softly. His hands went back to her hips and he was smiling up at her like she was a treasure. No - like she was divine. Jester leaned in and took his mouth in a long, loving kiss.

“I love you,” she whispered as they parted, her tail lashing in the air, betraying her nerves.

“I love you too, Jester.”

Jester reached behind her and stroked his cock with an oiled hand. As soon as she wrapped her fingers around him, his hips bucked up into her touch and he bit back a moan.

“Let me hear you,” she insisted, stroking him a little faster. He was so _beautiful_ like this, flushed and strung out from her touch.

“Ohhh, gods, baby…” That was more like it. She fumbled a little, trying to line him up with her entrance, but when she found the right spot his tip passed in easily. Jester gasped and gripped his shoulders, tensing her thighs so she didn’t take more before she was ready. Just this felt like a bigger stretch than she was used to, but she’d been so thoroughly prepared by his fingers and tongue that it didn’t hurt as much as she expected.

“Slow, _Liebling,_ slow, there is no rush, no rush at all,” Caleb murmured, one hand leaving her waist to cup her cheek. His voice was shaky, the effort of not letting instinct take over and push his hips up into her making his thighs shake.

Jester took a deep breath in and forced it out through her mouth. _This might just be a rip the bandage off situation._ She blew out another breath and pushed down onto his cock, seating herself down to the base with a cry of pain through gritted teeth. Caleb cried out too, surprised, and he took her face in his hands, gently pulling her forward to rest her head on his shoulder.

“You are doing so well, Jester, that’s it, sweet thing, I know, I know it hurts, I’m sorry… You are doing beautifully… It will go away, I promise, _Liebling_ …” His voice was soothing, carrying her through the initial pain of stretching, but miraculously, her body adjusted and the burn faded. Every nerve ending was on fire, bright, hot pleasure shooting up her spine with every slight motion, but she got herself back upright and moaned happily when the shift pushed him deeper.

“Fuck,” she gasped, putting her hands flat on his chest. “Gods, it feels so _good_ -“

“You feel incredible,” Caleb panted, running his hands over her hips and thighs.

Jester circled her hips experimentally, lifted up on her thighs and sank back down, rocked back and forth, trying to find the rhythm that felt best for them both. Her body wanted to rut forward, but that wasn’t really working. Caleb seemed to enjoy everything she did, producing a delightful litany of gasps and whimpers, and while that aroused her, it didn’t tell her what she needed.

“I - I don’t know how I should move,” she admitted, flushing in embarrassment.

“That’s okay, _Schatz_ ,” Caleb reassured her, taking one of her hands and kissing the tips of her fingers. “Let me help you.” He cupped her ass and guided her up and down in an easy motion, showing her the rhythm.

“ _Fucking hells_ ,” he swore, screwing his eyes shut as she tried it herself. “Gods- sorry, i-it’s hard to speak- with you on me. If you - _phew_ \- like that, you can do it that way, or-“

Caleb gently seated her back down so he was fully inside her and put both hands on her hips. He guided her hips again in a smooth, undulating pattern, rolling back and forth against his pelvis. Pleasure radiated through her whole body and she gasped, immediately falling into it. This motion didn’t make him move in and out of her very much, but her clit was grinding against his pubic bone and causing her cunt to spasm around his cock, making her feel even fuller.

“Oh, _gods_ , Jester, _please, bitte, hör nicht auf_ -“ _(please don’t stop)_

“Yes, yes, yes,” Jester panted, her breath short. Her thighs were trembling around his waist and she drank in through her lust-fueled haze the gorgeous sight of Caleb writhing beneath her, clenching the sheets in his free hand, flushed down to his chest and gulping down air. Nothing hurt now, only beautiful, liquid pleasure poured through her like warm honey, and her high, needy moans filled the air around them. She chased her orgasm and sobbed with desperation when Caleb lifted one hand to cup her breasts and roll her nipples between his fingers. Her head was swimming, no words, no thoughts, just overwhelming sensation, and powerful, heady love. Chest heaving, Caleb reached behind her and drew her tail up to his lips, kissing and sucking on her spade like it was made of spun sugar. Her rhythm stuttered for a moment, mesmerized by the almost criminally hot sight of his eyes fluttering shut and his red, wet lips stretching around the spade of her tail. Her faltering hips brought him back and he opened his eyes and started thrusting up into her, but he didn’t stop suckling on her spade and she had never known _anything_ could feel this good.

Her cries were just one long, loud moan now, and his hands were on her, his mouth was on her, and he was looking up at her like she was a goddess, and her climax slammed into her like a runaway cart.

Jester’s high-pitched yell reverberated through the room, she arched back and held onto his thighs, and her cunt clenched down hard around him as she came, pulling a shout out of Caleb that only made her release stronger.

“Ohhhh, gods, ja, beautiful, that’s it, cum for me,” he moaned, and Jester, body still trembling, pitched forward and kissed him, sloppy and gasping for breath. His hips thrust up into her one, two more times before he lost it, clutching her against his chest and pushing as deep as he could as he came. Jester’s mouth muffled the broken, sobbing shout that tore out of his chest, but she didn’t stop kissing him, and she could feel something hot and wet release inside her.

The afterglow that consumed Jester’s body and fogged her mind was powerful. She never wanted to stop kissing Caleb, she never wanted him to pull out, she never wanted him to be too far away for her to touch, not ever again. They took their time catching their breath; Caleb wrapped an arm around Jester’s shoulders and the other cupped her cheek. Jester just tried to hold herself up enough not to totally collapse on him and lost herself in their kisses. Murmured praises and declarations of love filled the space between their lips, in the brief moments there was any.

Eventually, he did soften and slip out of her and Jester dismounted with a sigh and rolled onto her side. She was boneless and hazy and in love, and she still didn’t want him far. Caleb entwined his legs with hers and propped himself up on one side too, facing her. His lazy, happy smile was infectious, and she took one of his hands between both of hers. Caleb’s other hand rested on her cheek, stroking it.

“Hi,” she whispered.

“Hi.”

“I’m sticky.” Caleb raised a hand without having to break eye contact and prestidigitated the mess they’d made - sweat, slick, cum, who knew what else - off their bodies and Jester’s sheets. She still had a bit of him inside her, though, and that thought made her shiver with delight.

“I was going to suggest a bath, but…” Jester teased.

“I think if you put me in the bath right now I would fall asleep and drown.”

“The mighty war mage Widogast, felled by sex with Jester Lavorre and a bubble bath.”

“If you knew the effort I am expending to keep my eyes open right now, you would know you are not far from correct.” Caleb pressed a kiss to her forehead. “How are you feeling, _Liebling?_ Was that… I mean, was that everything you wanted it to be? I wanted you to have a good time.”

“It was everything I wanted it to be and a lot more, Cayleb,” she replied, squeezing his hand. “I hope that it was good for you too, though, right? I know I didn’t really know what I was doing.”

“I wish I had words to describe how good it was for me,” he said. “It is you. Nothing else really matters.”

“I know, but...”

“No buts. That is how I feel. Making love to you could never be anything less than spectacular, as far as I am concerned.”

“Okay,” Jester murmured, smiling.

“If you are worried about your lack of experience, please do not be. Everyone’s first time is a little awkward and funny and you have to figure things out.”

“Yours was too?”

“Ja, mine was too. And I was much, much worse than you on my first time, if that makes you feel better.” Jester giggled.

“I don’t see how that’s possible.” Caleb blushed a little with embarrassment.

“Well, I was young. I have a bit more, ah, endurance now.” He kissed her again. “I love you, Jester Lavorre.”

“I love you too. I really, really do.” There was no angst about saying those words, not like in her books. They felt right, like they’d been waiting on the tip of her tongue for her to realize they were there, and that they were for him. She wanted to say it, so she did.

“Will you stay here tonight?” She asked, nuzzling his nose with hers.

“Of course. I would sleep in the dirt if you asked me to.”

It took them both a long time to finally rest.

“Go to sleep, _Schatz_ ,” Caleb said, when she drifted off to sleep and woke with a start in the middle of their conversation, for the third time.

“I don’t want tonight to be over, though,” she complained, pouting.

“We have tomorrow night, and the night after, and every night for as long as it takes you to get sick of me,” he teased. “But there will be no more nights if you try to stay up all night and die of exhaustion.”

“Uh, you’re one to talk!” Jester cried, shoving his shoulder. “I’ve found you asleep at your desk with your face in a puddle of ink.” He closed his eyes and shook his head.

“Once! One time!”

“Yeah, _I’ve_ only found you one time. Nott’s got at least a few.”

“Sorry, I cannot hear you, I’m sleeping.”

Jester giggled and turned over to snuggle into his arms. He pulled the quilt up around them and kissed the back of her head.

“Good night, _meine Liebe._ ”

“Good night, Cayleb.”

They were the first two down at breakfast the next morning, wanting to get some time to eat together before the chaos of the Nein and the day. They’d decided to keep things under wraps for now, though they wouldn’t be able to hide it forever. It was new, and special, and Jester didn’t want to share it with anyone just yet.

Jester snuggled close against Caleb’s side at the breakfast table, putting her plate of pancakes right next to his open spellbook.

“I can’t believe you don’t even want any whipped cream in this,” she scoffed as she handed him a cup of black coffee. He chuckled.

“Nein, thank you.”

“C’mon, just try it,” Jester giggled. She scooped some of the cream off her pancakes with her finger and held it up over his coffee cup. Caleb smiled at her and sucked the cream off the tip of her finger without breaking eye contact, a gesture that could only be described as obscene, and Jester laughed again as she leaned in to kiss him. She knew they were being disgustingly goopy. That’s why she wanted to get it out of her system by the time they had to start being normal around the rest of the group again.

When she heard Yasha’s heavy footsteps from the landing, Jester’s heart sank and she scooted away from Caleb, sliding her pancakes with her. Yasha and Beau strolled into the dining room, seemingly surprised to see them there.

“Oh, hey, you’re up early,” Beau noted. Jester saw that she had some bruises and cuts forming on her bare arms.

“So are you,” Jester teased. Beau blushed.

“We were just using my training room.”

“Sure you were.”

“Anyway, let’s talk about you.” Beau snatched a plate of bacon from a passing cat. “Did you ever get that prize for his scavenger hunt?” She gestured at Caleb with a strip of bacon. Caleb pretended not to be listening, hiding a smile behind his mug and flipping a page of his book.

“Yeah, I did,” Jester said with a scandalous grin, popping a bite of pancake into her mouth.

“Well? You said you were going to share it with me, what was it? Was it good?” This was really trying her commitment to being good and not outing them yet.

“Oh it was very good,” she said innocently. “I actually screamed out loud when I got it.” She steadfastly ignored the choking sound coming from behind her fiercely blushing wizard’s coffee cup and kept her eyes trained on Beau. Beau raised an eyebrow at her.

“Aaaaaand you said you were going to share it with me.”

“I don’t think you really want to share it,” Jester said, smiling. “I think we have different tastes.”

“The music box, you mean, _Li-_ Jester?” Caleb managed. “You should show her, I think she would like it. I - I can get it, just tell me where in your room it is.”

“On the table in the sitting room,” she said, beaming. “Thanks, Caaayleb.” He stood abruptly and practically ran off, trying to hide his beet red face.

“What’s got you so smiley?” Beau hissed, staring her down with suspicion. Jester shrugged and took another bite.

“I’m just happy we’ve all got a home now, that’s all.”

**Author's Note:**

> In case anyone was wondering (narrator: nobody was), the spells Caleb uses in the scavenger hunt are Magic Mouth and Programmed Illusion. The fact that there isn't more fic completely corrupting the Magic Mouth spell is a collective failure, frankly, and we should all be ashamed. The spell in the study is a homebrew I'm working on.
> 
> Author photosynthesizes kudos and comments into oxygen and smut.


End file.
